BLOSSBURG — Blossburg V.I.B.E. will host the American Ramp Company 2009 skate park demonstration team at the newly resurfaced basketball court at Island Park in Blossburg on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.

American Ramp Company will bring ramps that represent the three most popular build options and allow local skaters to test ride the equipment for the new Vibe Park skateboarding area, which is on schedule for opening in October. Skateboarders, inline skaters, and BMX riders can participate in the demonstration.

In addition to the skating exhibition, there will be music, contests and giveaways. T-shirts with the Vibe Park logo will also be available for purchase.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. members Jill Nickerson and Heidi Jones have been working on building a skateboarding and in-line skating area at Island Park for several years. They helped the Borough of Blossburg successfully apply for a Small Communities grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources that will provide approximately two-thirds of the $60,000 estimated cost of the project.

“I’m very excited to see our local skaters test the equipment we’re evaluating for the park,” Nickerson said. “Heidi and I really appreciate the support we’ve received from borough council and the recreation board to implement this project. We think the skate park will really benefit the community by giving the skaters a safer place to practice their skills.”

Participants under 18 must have legal guardian sign a waiver. All participants must wear helmets to receive a wristband to ride. The demonstration is free of charge.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business & Entertainment) is a nonprofit organization created in 2004 to envision, plan and implement projects that will enhance the quality of life for those who live, work, play or attend school in Blossburg. Tax-deductible donations to meet the community match portion of the state grant can be mailed to Blossburg V.I.B.E., PO Box 126, Blossburg, PA 16912.

Blossburg Visions in Business and Entertainment held a visioning session in January 2009 to help plan 2009 goals and action teams. The three common areas where VIBE action teams will be focusing on in 2009 are: Community (Rec) Building, hiking/bikiking trails, and free/low-cost community activities (rec programs) for all ages. If you’re interested in finding out more or lending a hand, please attend the next VIBE meeting. VIBE meetings are held on the 4th Wednesday of the month at 6 PM at the Kiwanis Building on the Island Park, Blossburg.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. Members See Fruits – and Vegetables – of Labor
Community garden now harvesting

BLOSSBURG, Aug. 7 — After months of hard work in her plot at the Blossburg community garden, Mary Higgins entered her snapdragons in the Tioga County Fair and won a blue ribbon. Higgins is a member of the Blossburg V.I.B.E. community garden team that turned an empty lot across from the Blossburg Fire Hall on Main Street into a thriving garden this growing season and the harvest is beginning.

V.I.B.E. President Tonya McNamara led the effort to create a garden with expert guidance from Anne Fisher-LoPinto of Liberty and Diane Stehman of Arnot and lots of help from many community members.The garden consists of 19 individual 4′ by 4′ and 4′ by 8′ plots and four large community plots with potatoes and squash to rejuvenate the soil.

“The idea of a community garden has been floating around for a couple of years,” McNamara said. “This year it all came together. The Borough of Blossburg allowed us to use the empty lot located in a flood zone and the Blossburg Municipal Authority provided access to water.”

The goal of the garden is to provide access to land for planting for those who might not have it, as well as a supportive environment to learn about gardening, McNamara said. It has the additional benefit of using an unproductive lot of land near the borough business district.

“There’s an innate need in people to see things grow,” said Anne Fisher-LoPinto, who has run a “Community Supported Agriculture” garden in the Liberty area. “Somehow, touching soil opens up another dimension for people when they put a seed in the ground, tend and water it, watch it grow and come to fruit. The garden helps fill that need for people to see things grow by their own hand, providing a sense of accomplishment. It seems miraculous. It connects me to the cycles of life. If I’m not doing these things, I feel like a wheel with a flat spot.”

In June, the garden hosted a composting class taught by Ardith Boostrom from the Penn State Cooperative Extension master gardener program. The 15 people who attended received a free composter. In May, Fisher-LoPinto gave a class on starting plants from seeds and transplanting.

“The garden has been very successful. We have about 15 different individuals and families with plots, plus Toddler University,” McNamara said. “The age range of the gardeners is three to over 70.”

Toddler University Daycare & Preschool offered a gardening summer camp for three-to-five year old children. Sixteen children worked on two four-by-eight boxes. They grew peppers, squash, flowers and cucumbers, learned about composting, made a worm farm and watering cans. “The garden is blooming!” said Toddler University owner and director Jill Nickerson. “This helped the children connect with the community and with the natural environment.”

In May, V.I.B.E. received a $2,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture to promote the existing farmers’ market held every Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Riverside Plaza parking lot. V.I.B.E. used the funds to purchase advertising, benche, and a shed to store signs for the farmers’ market. The shed also holds tools used by the community garden members.

The garden has been supported by donations of cash and goods from Jack and Mary Eckman, Carol and Larry Tama, Anne Fisher-LoPinto, Bill Nickerson and Blossburg Borough in addition to the box rent fees.

Photos of the garden are available at www.blossburg.org/vibe.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business and Entertainment) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for those who live, work, play or attend school in Blossburg. Tax-deductible contributions for the garden or other projects may be mailed to PO Box 126, Blossburg, PA 16912.

At the regular monthly V.I.B.E. meeting in July, members elected new officers. Tonya McNamara was elected president, Jill Nickerson was re-elected vice president, Jackie Smith was elected secretary and Kelly Rossell was elected treasurer.

In December 2007 V.I.B.E. had a new welcome sign erected by the green bridge to replace the one that had been there for many years and was ready for a face lift. Plans are in the works to have the area landscaped under and around the sign and spot lights to illuminate the top of the sign at night. The sign has the added advantage in being much safer for the people who change the messages on the event sign.

At the regular monthly V.I.B.E. meeting in July, members elected new officers. Tonya McNamara was elected president, Jill Nickerson was re-elected vice president, Jackie Smith was elected secretary and Heidi Jones was elected treasurer.

To fullfill part of the requirements of the Department of Community and Economic Development grant, several V.I.B.E. members attended trainings offered by the Pennsylvania Downtown Center on the four aspects of Main Street revitalization. Carol Tama attended the session on organizational development, Heidi Jones and Jill Nickerson attended the session on design, Tonya McNamara and Bev Jones attended the economic restructuring session, and Bev also attended the session on promoting the downtown area.

BLOSSBURG, April 18 – Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business and Entertainment) awarded grants Wednesday to Blossburg Main Street property owners Ray Davis and the First Baptist Church of Blossburg for improvements to facades of their buildings at 314 and 213-215 Main Street, respectively.

“Ray’s Service Center is now a vibrant, inviting building as you enter downtown Blossburg” said V.I.B.E. president Beverly Jones. “The new siding and porch on the storefronts and apartments owned by the First Baptist Church really change how the downtown looks. V.I.B.E. appreciates the time and money they’ve spent to make this happen.”

The grant money was provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development as part of its New Communities Main Street program which seeks to revitalize Pennsylvania’s downtown areas through a four-point approach that encompasses design (such as the façade restorations, parking, signage and streetscapes), promotions, economic restructuring and organization. Blossburg V.I.B.E. has been awarded $65,000 for planning and façade improvement grants since April 2005.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. awards matching grants to property owners who have completed historically appropriate renovations to the façade of a building, up to $3,000 per storefront. The design guidelines were developed by the design team in conjunction with Larson Design Group of Williamsport.

Ray’s Service Center at 314 Main Street has new garage doors, new corrugated siding, new doors, red and white paint scheme and new signage.

The building at the corner of Hannibal and Main Streets, owned by the First Baptist Church of Blossburg, houses The Small Mall, owned by Linda Shypulefsky and several apartments. The church invested in new siding, a new side porch and new lighting for the building.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business & Entertainment) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization created in 2004 to envision, plan and implement projects that will enhance the quality of life for those who live, work, play or attend school in Blossburg. More information about V.I.B.E. can be found at www.blossburg.org/vibe.

For information, applications or assistance, please contact Bev Jones at 570-638-2763 or jonesbev@gmail.com.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. held an Environmental Fair Saturday, Nov. 17 at the Blossburg Memorial Library. Approximately 50 people attended from as close as Blossburg and as far as Brookfield Township. Most brought items to be recycled by Northern Tier Solid Waste Authority, including computer parts, magazines and textiles. Nearly 3,000 pounds of materials were collected for recycling. Lynne Graham of Middlebury won the door prize, a bag of environmentally safe cleaning products from Shaklee Corporation donated by Shaklee distributor Heidi Hickok. Picture 1: Del Kirkendall of Arnot recycled computer parts with the help of Donald Kurzejewski from NTSWA. Picture 2: Two of Ivan and Rose Erway’s children made trailmix at the booth of Mansfield University’s Environmental Awareness Club with the help of the club’s representative, Elizabeth Lloyd.

BLOSSBURG, Nov. 18 – Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business and Entertainment) awarded grants Wednesday to Blossburg Main Street property owners Stephen (“Doc”) and Pat Ollock and Jill and Shane Nickerson for improvements to facades of their buildings at 228 and 242 Main Street , respectively.

The grant money was provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development as part of its New Communities Main Street program which seeks to revitalize Pennsylvania’s downtown areas through a four-point approach that encompasses design (such as the façade restorations, parking, signage and streetscapes), promotions, economic restructuring and organization. Blossburg V.I.B.E. was awarded $30,000 for planning and façade improvement grants in April.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. awards matching grants to property owners who have completed historically appropriate renovations to the façade of a building, up to $3,000. The design guidelines were developed by the design team in conjunction with Larson Design Group of Williamsport.

“We’re excited to be moving forward with this program and are very pleased with the success of our first award recipients. The Ollocks and the Nickersons are leading the effort to beautify Main Street and bring more attention to Blossburg,” said V.I.B.E. president Heidi Jones. “V.I.B.E. appreciates the time and money they’ve spent to make this happen.”

The Ollocks recently completed extensive renovations to the interior and exterior of their building at 228 Main Street , which now houses the Blossburg area Head Start program of Laurel Health Services. The façade renovations included redesigning the entry way, painting, cleaning and preserving original corrugated and plate glass windows, removing small basement windows and replacing them with architecturally appropriate wood panels. The Ollocks also plan to install an awning over the entryway.

The Nickersons painted the front of their building at 242 Main Street with an historically appropriate color scheme that highlights the fancy details of the late Victorian architecture. They also cleaned and restored the door and windows of the structure that were damaged in a fire in July 2003.

Blossburg V.I.B.E. (Visions in Business & Entertainment) is a nonprofit organization created in 2004 by the Blossburg Borough Council and Blossburg Improvement Association to envision, plan and implement projects that will enhance the quality of life for those who live, work, play or attend school in Blossburg.